$9 million expansion underway at Cascade Mountain ski, snowboarding destination in Portage

PORTAGE -- A popular ski and snowboarding destination in Wisconsin is expanding.

A $9 million expansion is planned at Cascade Mountain, located off of I-90/94 in Portage.

It opened in 1962 with one chair lift, 17 employees and 70 customers.

This year's multi-million dollar makeover will be Cascade Mountain's biggest expansion ever.

"Everywhere you go, there's always something going on. This guy is clearing a trail, these guys are building a bridge," Randy Axelson with Cascade Mountain said.

The first of the three-phase project should be complete this winter season.

Visitors can expect new trails, an expanded main lodge and two new ski lifts, including the Cindy Pop Express that goes about three football fields further up a hill.